Patriots should regret cutting young wide receiver before drafting Drake Maye

The receiving corps in New England has been a constant issue over the past few years, even before Tom Brady left the team in 2020. They have brought in several players over the years in hopes of putting together a solid offense to help the quarterback, whoever he was at the time, and the new regime attempted to do that this year for Drake Maye.

That explains their rationale behind only adding veteran K.J. Osborn in free agency and double-dipping at the position in the draft by selecting Javon Baker and Ja'Lynn Polk. It all seemed like a great plan during the offseason, even if it wasn't the ideal situation for a rookie quarterback, only for it to be proven a mistake once Maye was named the starter.

Unfortunately, the hype has fallen flat since the season began, especially since Maye took over the offense. It's brought up big regrets for the players they passed on in the draft, like Ladd McConkey, who has been having an impressive year with the Chargers.

Or even players they released in the past, like Lil'Jordan Humphrey, who spent the 2022 season in New England and barely had an opportunity to make much of an offensive impact. He is now with the Denver Broncos and having a standout year with rookie quarterback Bo Nix.

A receiver like Lil'Jordan Humphrey would be really helpful to Drake Maye this year

Although he's not the flashiest of names nor one of the best in the league, it's looking like a big mistake by the Patriots to have moved on from Lil'Jordan Humphrey after the 2022 season, especially since he's jiving well with his rookie quarterback in Denver.

So far in 2024, Humphrey has played in 11 games, and despite the stats looking mostly unimpressive (he's recorded 27/39 receptions for 263 yards and a touchdown), he's clearly proving to be a solid weapon for Nix and very well could have been exactly that for Maye in New England.

His performance looks even better when you compare what he's done to Baker and Polk, who have totaled just 11/28 receptions for 80 yards and two touchdowns, all of which was accomplished by Polk alone.

It has made the season a bit trickier for Maye, as he has had to mostly rely on tight end Hunter Henry to move the chains consistently. It should be a wake-up call for the Patriots coaching staff and will ensure they go all in on acquiring the much-needed talent Maye should be surrounded with for 2025 and beyond.